How Do You Know If Your House Has Lead Paint?
Start with the age of the house. The EPA says a home built before 1978 is more likely to have lead-based paint, that dust and paint chips from lead-based paint are one of the most common sources of lead exposure in homes, and that the federal government banned the sale of lead-based paint for use in homes in 1978.
To test for it, the EPA recommends hiring a certified inspector or risk assessor, and says the only way to know for certain whether a building has lead-based paint or lead hazards is to have it tested. It describes an inspection as a surface-by-surface investigation of whether a home has lead-based paint and where it is located, and a risk assessment as an on-site investigation of the presence, type, severity and location of lead-based paint hazards, including lead in paint, dust and soil, with suggested ways to control them. Only certified professionals can legally perform either. The EPA recognizes three lead test kits, LeadCheck, D-Lead and the State of Massachusetts kit, for determining whether lead-based paint is present in pre-1978 housing under its renovation rules, but says that recognition only applies to use by Lead-Safe Certified renovators.
Renovation can stir it up. The EPA says renovation, repair and painting can create hazardous lead dust when surfaces with lead paint are disturbed, even paint from many decades ago, and its Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule, fully effective since April 22, 2010, requires anyone paid to do that work in pre-1978 homes to be certified and trained in lead-safe work practices. The rule generally does not apply to homeowners working on their own homes, but does if, among other cases, they rent out all or part of the home or buy, renovate and sell homes for profit. The EPA says lead is harmful to all adults and can cause decreased kidney function, heart-related problems and increased blood pressure, infertility in men and women, and learning, memory and concentration problems.
Sources checked September 15, 2026. Every point below links the page it came from.
The sources behind this answer
- Government sourceThe EPA says a home built before 1978 is more likely to have lead-based paint, that dust and paint chips from it are one of the most common sources of lead exposure in homes, and that the sale of lead-based paint for homes was banned in 1978. US EPA ↗
- Government sourceTo test for lead-based paint at home, the EPA recommends hiring a certified inspector or risk assessor, and says its recognition of lead test kits only applies to use by Lead-Safe Certified renovators. US EPA ↗
- Regulatory filingThe EPA recognizes three lead test kits for use in complying with its renovation rule, the LeadCheck, D-Lead and State of Massachusetts kits. US EPA ↗
- Government sourceThe EPA says the only way to know for certain whether a building has lead-based paint or lead hazards is to have it tested, and calls inspections and risk assessments useful first steps for pre-1978 housing. US EPA ↗
- Regulatory filingThe EPA describes a lead-based paint inspection as a surface-by-surface investigation of whether a home has lead-based paint and where, and says only certified inspectors or risk assessors can legally perform one. US EPA ↗
- Regulatory filingThe EPA describes a risk assessment as an on-site investigation of the presence, type, severity and location of lead-based paint hazards in paint, dust and soil, with suggested ways to control them. US EPA ↗
- Regulatory filingThe EPA’s 2008 Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule requires workers to be certified and trained in lead-safe work practices and firms to be EPA-certified, requirements that became fully effective April 22, 2010. US EPA ↗
- Regulatory filingThe EPA says its renovation rule generally does not apply to homeowners working on their own pre-1978 homes, but does apply if they rent out all or part of the home or buy, renovate and sell homes for profit. US EPA ↗
- Government sourceThe EPA says lead is harmful to all adults and can cause decreased kidney function, heart-related problems and increased blood pressure, infertility, learning, memory and concentration problems, and weakness in fingers, wrists and ankles. US EPA ↗
Sources checked September 15, 2026. A brand statement is the company’s own claim, which we report but have not verified. Our grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests.